Going into high school, I was dead set on becoming an engineer. Although art was one of my passions, I never really realized what value my art skills held and what I could potentially use it for on a professional level. However, my perspective on creative careers and my future plans changed when I attended the Institute for Educational Advancement鈥檚 at , under the mentorship of Professor Stan Kong.

I applied for the product design site of this program. The funny thing is, though, was that I didn鈥檛 know what product design was at all – or the essence of design. I just knew that the program would teach basic sketching and rendering skills as the description mentioned, which was enough to pique my interest. Despite this, I ended up learning so much more.

In the first week at ArtCenter, I learned about the product design industry, the design process and business-oriented techniques and experiences. I was surprised to discover how diverse, versatile and vast product design is as a field, in addition to how the design process resembled the scientific method; it begins with a prompt, followed by research, reformulation of prompt or objective, and a cycling between ideation, development and testing until, finally, production.

One of the biggest things I took away from the first week was how to work and thrive in a company. Communication, collaboration, understanding 鈥� these are all important to obtaining success in the industry. And I know because we actually did a project that resembled the experience of working in a company in which we had to work with others to create a flashlight design that satisfied the needs of a particular consumer. In teams, we interviewed our client, researched materials and resources, elaborated on different ideas and pitched our design. Being familiar with your client, demographic, competitors and the market place was the key to success. For me it was challenging to manage so many ideas in a group, to eliminate what was impractical and to agree on a particular vision. It鈥檚 through this first-hand experience, though, that I learned how work with others better, whether it was in EXPLORE or outside of it.

In the following weeks, we worked on more collaborative projects, like designing lunchboxes and water bottles, and we all improved in communicating and understanding. We learned more about the industry, like branding and advertising. However, we also learned about ArtCenter itself by exploring all their offered majors and what it felt like to be a college student.

The whole experience was so fun, stimulating, and enriching in that I not only learned, but experienced the product design process, business and marketing and ArtCenter. And it was so much better that I experienced this with peers who were funny, talented, and ambitious; I鈥檒l remember all the laughs and the trip on the ArtCenter shuttle where we played games the entire way back. I also had the pleasure of being taught skills and life lessons from Stan鈥檚 personal experiences that I鈥檒l take with me in the future.

Because I joined the 优蜜视频 EXPLORE Externship at ArtCenter, I鈥檝e become a better collaborator, presenter, artist and life-long learner. I plan to study and pursue product, industrial or interactive design in the future. In fact, I hope to be admitted to one of the several colleges to which I applied to study both engineering and design, two passions I鈥檝e learned were anything but exclusive. For now, I鈥檒l be attending , a program that EXPLORE introduced me to.

I hope that my experience encourages others to explore their interests or overlooked passions to discover what the world has to offer 鈥� and what they can offer to the world.

Want to experience a hands-on externship under the guidance of an experienced mentor this summer? ! Applications for the 2019 program are due April 9, 2019.

Twinkling lights and delicious Mediterranean cuisine set the stage for an evening of fun and inspiring conversation among the 优蜜视频 community at our benefit dinner and silent auction hosted at Eden Garden Bar & Grill in Pasadena. Enthusiastic student volunteers from 优蜜视频鈥檚 Academy, EXPLORE, CDB and Yunasa programs greeted guests and invited them to pick up a wacky prop or two to pose for our photo booth (you can check out more photos on or our #ISupportGifted) before walking through the restaurant鈥檚 gorgeous covered patio to connect with old friends and greet new members of the 优蜜视频 family.

Cocktails and generous servings of hors d鈥檕euvres kept spirits high as guests perused 优蜜视频鈥檚 silent auction table, which included popular items like Disney Park Hopper tickets, behind-the-scenes tours of L.A. movie studios and museums, Lakers tickets and a highly-coveted Uber gift card. A half case of Bordeaux wine, generously donated by an 优蜜视频 family, was offered as a special drawing prize for guest donations; 优蜜视频鈥檚 own and her husband, Mikel, who captured our evening through his beautiful photography, were the winners.

The evening鈥檚 emcee was Jason Roberts, an entrepreneur noted for his work as one of the first developers at Uber and the gifted parent of a gifted child. Jason provided insight and humor in his anecdotes as he discussed the impact that a high school mentor had on shaping his path and fueling his passion for mathematics and computer programming. 听He strives to inspire the same passion in his students through the accelerated math curriculum that he and his wife, Sandy, developed for their son鈥檚 PUSD school. Jason recalls his mentor pushing him not just to do better, but to do his best by setting the bar high (encouraging Jason to teach himself Calculus, for instance). Jason attributes this spirit of perseverance instilled by his mentor as a value that nourished him academically, strengthened him during difficult times, and fed his ambition as an entrepreneur.

Alumni speakers Sophie Romans and Teagan Lende echoed the importance of building a community to nurture gifted learners. As former Caroline D. Bradley Scholars, both received full scholarships to attend an optimally-matched high school that suited their unique learning needs, but in retrospect, it wasn鈥檛 the money that stood out to them as the most life-changing aspect of their time with 优蜜视频: 鈥淕rowing up in North Dakota, I didn鈥檛 have access to any kind of gifted community,鈥� Teagan admitted, 鈥渂ut 优蜜视频 gave me a support network of adults and peers that I never thought I would have.鈥澨� Sophie added, 鈥淭his community is the most incredible group of people. I want to make sure that I stay close to support them in any way I can as a small thank you for the way they supported me.鈥�

The program ended with a lively 鈥減addle raise鈥� conducted by Jason Roberts, who brought his infectious enthusiasm to the role of auctioneer. Guests eagerly pledged to donate, raising funds that will go directly towards supporting the children and families served by 优蜜视频鈥檚 customized programs.

优蜜视频 is sincerely grateful to all of our guests, especially our event鈥檚 Supporter-level patrons, Kimberly & Juan Balbuena and Seong Sik Jeon & Joo Eun Bae, for coming to the event. The evening would not have been possible without the generous support of our friends, including Art Center College of Design; Bridges Academy; Dugan & Dugan, P.C.; Gunn Psychological Services, Inc.; Jim Manoledes, Realtor; Mercer Educational Consulting; and Online G3. We would also like to thank our emcee, Jason Roberts, and Alumni speakers, Teagan Lende and Sophie Romans, for sharing their stories and providing a voice for gifted students, as well as our student volunteers Aditya Athota, Aveline Chen, Chloe Jiang, Ian Macklin Sims, Nico Symons Galassi and Ellie Surman. Thank you all for helping us create a magical evening and for being champions for gifted education!

As our guests departed, each was encouraged to participate in a tradition that 优蜜视频 practices during our . By 鈥渟etting intentions鈥� we create a clear idea of what we hope for, releasing our desires into the universe with trust and gratitude and ending our intention with the phrase, 鈥渁nd so it is.鈥澨� At 优蜜视频, we intend that the adult members of our 优蜜视频 family advocate for the extraordinary children in their lives, seeking the best possible learning environments, programs, and social opportunities for each child. We intend for the young gifted individuals in our community to receive the attentiveness, guidance, support, and acceptance they deserve.

And so it is.

Thank you to our business sponsors:

听听听听 听 听听 听听听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听 听听听 听 听 听 听
Jim Manoledes, Realtor, Broker Associate

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